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The event had its beginnings at the SSCA Annual Gathering in Melbourne, FL, when Jan Cosby and I drove upstate to represent Bluewater for the first time ever. I attended Nigel's seminar on electrical systems, and approached him about the possibility of speaking at Bluewater. Vivien Godfrey and John Mann, Bluewater's owners, agreed to host the event, and, a few months later, everything fell into place.

The presentation opened with a photo of a sailboat grounded in shockingly low water. "That vessel was cruising in water that, according to the chart, should have been twenty feet deep," Nigel said. He went on to explain the differences in the datums used to create charts, the process by which they are surveyed, and what happens when you rely on a GPS that is not set to match the datum used for your chart.

Accompanied by many diagrams and photos, the presentation had everyone in the audience riveted. When he discussed the differences between raster and vector cartography, Nigel zoomed in on a particular day beacon in Maine waters. The beacon was located next to a rock. On the raster version of the chart, the size of the beacon changed. On the vector version, which many people prefer because of the ways the data can be manipulated, the actual location of the beacon changed. "When you zoom in, in this case, the chart makes it look like there is enough room to pass between the beacon and the rock," Nigel said. "Well, there simply isn't. This illustrates one of the fundamental problems with electronic navigation. You can't zoom in, because you'll change the accuracy of the chart."

Right: Clockwise from top left: John Mann, Nigel Calder, Melanie Neale and Vivien Godfrey.

Many of us felt a little uneasy after the presentation was over, mainly, I think, because of the realization of how little we really knew. But we all felt better for being there--after all, isn't the first step to becoming educated admitting that you have a lot to learn? Reading Nigel's book, How to Read a Nautical Chart, is the next step. Many of the people who came the seminar already had a copy, and Nigel was available afterwards to sign books and chat.

Among the crowd were cruisers Drew and Hailey aboard Dosia, a 1980 Pearson 365 Ketch. I met them a couple weeks ago, when they came into the store to buy charts. Here's what's hot about them: they're young, they're cruising on an older boat, which they've restored themselves, and they have no set schedule for where they plan on going. You can check out their website at www.lostonpurpose.net. They seem to be having a great time. Susi, of Bluewater Newsletter fame, attended the seminar with her husband and several friends. You can read her article, Wild Boat Rescued, in this edition. The crew from Maule Lake--Rod, Tim and Dan (a scruffy bunch of sailors)--showed up in time to get front row seats. A couple who had learned about our events from the Bonnet House Alliance made an appearance, and many members of the SSCA attended.

I was left thinking about the Garmin chart plotter that, after four years of having nothing aboard but paper charts, has found its way onto my boat. I'm not sure what to think of it. All I know is that no charts, paper or electronic, are as reliable as a good set of eyes

As for the "Who's Hot and Who's Not" part of the story, I think it's safe to say that everyone who showed up to the seminar is now a more prudent navigator. And that's hot.